Wah Taj: A monumental disaster

FILM: Wah Taj

CAST: Shreyas Talpade, Manjari Fadnis

DIRECTOR: Ajit Sinha

AFarmer couple’s attempt to make a point by parking their tractor in front of Shah Jahan’s monument to Mumtaz – Taj Mahal, leads to a media frenzy and a court case. Tukaram Marathe (Shreyas Talpade) and his wife (Manjari Fadnis) are prepared for the long haul though (involving social workers, mediators and politicians) – unfortunately the audience is left high and dry.

The farmer who has come from Maharashtra to Agra on his tractor lays claim to the Taj Mahal since, according to the Farsi documents with royal seals intact, the land that the Monument stands on was given to his ancestor by the emperor Humayun. Frankly I don’t see why he lays claim to the monument instead of the land it stands on. Also if you use simplistic logic, he could have aimed for a just compensation. But debutant director Ajit Sinha dreams big without making it above board. The sound effects are much more in keeping with TV sitcoms. The sloppy edits don’t make the proceedings interesting either.

The attempt at satire comes unstuck in an outlandish set-up that defies all logic. The dialogues are stirring but the storyline just doesn’t have the structural strength to keep you interested. Performances are patchy at best. Don’t know what the writer was thinking while conceptualising this script!